DARDANELLE — Anticipation was high Saturday night at Tarascos as the Dardanelle High School Class of 1977 waited for the unveiling of its time capsule.

Class members met at 5:30 p.m. and finished up some class business, read their senior wills aloud and the entire time, most eyes were on the time capsule that was situated at the front of the room.

When the time came to open the capsule, though, there was hesitation. Who was going to open the pressurized stainless steel canister?

Jerry Don Woods had a friend on stand-by with a sawzall, just in case muscle power wasn’t enough.

Ernest Goins stepped up to the canister and after some manipulation, the vessel opened.

After a few gasps and cheers, the room was quiet as the class members and spouses waited to see what was in it.

“It’s wet,” Goins told the group.

It looked as though the gasket on the time capsule had slipped and allowed weather elements in over time. The articles were placed inside a heavy-duty black trash bag that aided some in the defense against the elements.

Goins braved the dampened canister and pulled out all, and in some cases, its gooey contents one piece of memorabilia at a time.

“It was kid of a bummer,” Woods said. “We were all so excited about this. To come this far and have the contents be damaged is a letdown for sure, but I think we’re all just as excited that we had the opportunity to get together as a group again. Some of us haven’t seen each other in ages. This entire weekend has been a blast.”

Kim Graves, a former cheerleader, was the first to have contents that were legible. She wrote what appeared to be an essay that included a segment on women’s right and explained cheerleading to future generations.

The contents ranged from essays on such topics as cheerleading, impending nuclear war, women athletes and fun on a Friday night to collages of pictures cut out from magazines showcasing hair styles, homes, cars and industry.

The time capsule was a U.S. History project, so each student either chose or was assigned a current subject to memorialize for future generations.

As Goin continued to remove the contents, others placed the soggy items on the floor to sort, decipher and when possible match the item to the owner.

One person in attendance, Marilyn Jane Dukes, was excited to just be a part of the group, time capsule or no time capsule.

The class of 1977 was her first teaching job when the students were in the fourth grade. Dukes arrived in the Arkansas River Valley in 1969 by bus to apply for a teaching job in Russellville. The bus ride from Trenton, N.J., was lengthy and by the time she arrived, the teaching position was filled. The school called Dardanelle and sent Dukes there to apply for a position in Dardanelle school district and she was hired.

She taught three years at Dardanelle — fourth, then fifth and then third grades. She taught the class of 1977 two years in a row and said they are still one of her favorite memories of teaching.

Her husband, Randy, said his wife had literally been on “cloud nine,” looking forward to the reunion for three months.

“When Jerry Don called me about the reunion and time capsule, I was so excited,” Dukes said. “It has been a joy to look forward to for three months. I’m very fond of my time here and this class in particular. This is my last year teaching, so it seems fitting that I started my career here and I’m visiting here during my last year.”

Woods said tracking Dukes down in Florida after all these years was a miracle in itself.

Woods and the others in attendance agreed that while opening the time capsule to find its content not in pristine condition was a let down, the event itself was priceless and well worth the anticipation.